The camp of former president Rodrigo Duterte has informed the International Criminal Court (ICC) that the Philippine government may be willing to accept a decision granting him temporary release as he faces charges for crimes against humanity.

Duterte’s lawyer, Nicholas Kaufman, said in a Friday filing that “the possibility of Duterte’s release is now contemplated without objection by the Government of the Republic of the Philippines, which surrendered Mr. Duterte to the International Criminal Court (ICC).”

Duterte has been detained at The Hague, Netherlands since 13 March 2025, awaiting trial for alleged atrocities tied to his “war on drugs” during his presidency and earlier tenure as Davao City mayor.

His lawyers claim he suffers from an “impaired memory and [a] concomitant inability to retain new information or to recall events, places, times, or even members of his family and defense team.”

Palace to respect ICC decision

Kaufman cited Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro who last week said the Marcos administration would respect the ICC’s ruling if Duterte was granted an interim release.

“It seems her frequent travels paid off. If that’s good news for them, the Marcos Jr. administration will accept whatever decision the ICC makes,” Castro said, obviously referring to Vice President Sara Duterte.

Her statement followed the Vice President’s claim that an unnamed country had agreed to host her father if he were released. She clarified that the host nation was not Japan, while Australia publicly denied involvement despite her visit there.

“We were delayed in filing for interim release because we first had to look for someone to help me, as I could not trust anyone in the Philippines. I turned to the people I’d met abroad through my work and asked them to help us,” the Vice President said.

Kaufman said former president Duterte had instructed him “to do all possible to ensure his interim release.” In July, the defense argued that Duterte was not a flight risk and that his continued detention was unnecessary “to ensure the integrity of the investigation or to preclude the continued commission of crimes.”

The confirmation of charges hearing, initially set for 23 September, was suspended indefinitely after Duterte’s camp said he was “not fit to stand trial” due to his cognitive decline.

Duterte had always said that he was willing to accept full responsibility for his anti-drug campaign during which official figures showed 6,000 died while human rights groups claimed more than 30,000 were killed.